Siak Sri Indrapura was the centre of an islamitic Malayan kingdom which enjoyed its golden age from the 18th through 20th century. Sultan Abdul Jalil Rakhmad Syah founded the kingdom in 1725. He was the first in a family tree of 12 sultans who would reign until 1945. In November 1945, the last sultan, Sultan Syarif Kasyim II, sent a cable to the president of the Republic of Indonesia stating his loyalty to the republic, and he contributed his properties to the struggle of independence.
The old palace of Siak Sri Indrapura is definitely worth a visit. It is located 125 km northeaset from Pekanbaru and can best be reached from Pekanbaru over land. The palace was built in 1889 by the 11th Sultan Abdul Jalil Syafuddin, who ruled Siak from 1889 to 1908.
The palace stores a collection of properties of the last sultans. In the reception area, life size figures of the sultan and his courtiers welcome the visitor. Inside the palace, one can admire the gold plated royal throne and a duplicate of the royal crown. The original gold crown has been brought to the National Museum in Jakarta. Large photographs of the last sultans decorate the walls of the palace.
Left: Duplicate of
the royal crown
The last sultans formed a part of the Dutch establishment. Much of the decor in the palace is European. A big attraction is the Komet, a large German music player, whose perforated metal disks tinkle tunes of Mozart, Beethoven and Strauss, brought by the sultan from a visit to Europe in 1896. People say that there are only two left in the world.
Close to the palace, at the banks of the Siak river, is the Royal Mosque. Next to the mosque there are some graves of the royal family.
No comments:
Post a Comment